Sculpture In Her Honour

In Her Honour ~ by Veronica Miles is a deeply personal body of ceramic work created as a tribute to women who carry the BRCA2 gene mutation.

It began with a bust, an intimate sculpture of my mother, who was first diagnosed with breast cancer at 29. One breast is missing, not just as a symbol of what cancer takes but as a space of absence, of memory, and of silent grief. It speaks to the quiet battles women fight behind closed doors and the invisible scars they carry.

 This work was informed by the work of Svenja Kratz, who specialises in cell tissue culture in interdisciplinary art. Her work reflects on what is inherent through DNA and ongoing life cycles. (Kratz Unknown) I also looked at the artist Junko Mori, who assembles small components into visually compelling sculptures that echo the patterns of cell division under a microscope. (Lufkin 2003)

As the work evolved, I began shaping vessels to represent the women in our family living with this gene mutation. These forms stand firm, embodying resilience, femininity, and the enduring beauty that lives on through struggle and change. Each vessel is a tribute, not to perfection, but to truth. They reflect the trust we place in our bodies, the pain of loss, and the powerful love that continues after someone we cherish is gone.

The series grew into floral wall hangings, representing the broader community of women worldwide who share this gene mutation. Two black wall pieces are dedicated to those who did not survive, serving as poignant markers of profound loss and remembrance.

In Her Honour is a body of work shaped by grief and held by grace. Through clay, I honour the complexity of the BRCA2 journey—the beauty that doesn’t lie in symmetry or flawlessness but in the stories, the strength, and the love etched into each of us.